Al-Qushayr?'s Teleological Theology

Ab? al-Q?sim al-Qushayr?'s (d. 465/1072) theological oeuvres remain eclipsed by his celebrated achievements in Sufism, with prevailing scholarly assertions that he is a mere repeater of Ash?arite views and that his theology plays an apologetic role within al-Ris?lat al-Qushayriyya, anchoring its esoteric content to orthodoxy. Against this backdrop, the present study investigates al-Qushayr?'s theology, in the light of intellectual developments in the fourth-fifth/tenth-eleventh centuries. His views are critically analysed on prominent epochal issues across his three most voluminous theological creeds, Luma? f? al-i?tiq?d, al-Fu??l f? al-u??l and al-Ris?la. Key topics include God's attributes; His relationship with man; and epistemological concerns. The thesis argues that al-Qushayr?'s theology is, contrary to prevailing views, neither homogenous, nor entirely Ash?arite. It reveals that his variegated theology is shaped by teleological forces. Al-Luma? shows a traditionalist bent, whereas al-Fu??l is distinctly semi-rationalist. In al-Ris?la, he lays the foundations of a mystical theology that governs the Sufi schema, whilst simultaneously delimiting the relevance of Ash?arite doctrines to the mere confines of the masses.